Last Days Of The Raj

Poor quality food and service at gourmet prices.

We went to this restaurant with high expectations, based on its past reputation and some of the reviews on this site. I can only assume that the glowing reviews at the top of this list are from the distant past, or were submitted by the owners, because this was one of the worst and most over-priced meals our party have experienced.

For a start, the place is freezing (November evening). We sat shivering on the seats by the door until we had ordered and the staff directed us into the eating area, which was also far too cold for a restaurant.

The menu has a huge selection, but based on what was served, it seems like all variations on stock sauces. I ordered a lamb jalfrezi which turned out to be a bland generic curry with some chopped tomato and green chilli mixed in. The meat was rather tough and dry with no real taste. No taste of ginger, garlic or coriander, definitely no fresh coriander. In other words, it tasted exactly like a stock sauce for bland curry but cost more.

The rice was re-heated and greasy with congealed lumps.

The tarka dal was like washing up water flavoured with burn garlic. How much do lentils cost? What a ridiculous way of short-changing your customers.

For what the naan breads cost you would expect top quality, but what a disappointment - sweet and bland with no hint of the promised garlic. Go and buy them in the supermarket for a more authentic taste.

The service: the junior waiters were the friendly polite gentle characters that you would hope to meet. However the major domo type head waiter and most of the other staff were brusque and indifferent. No eye contact, no "how was your meal?", no interaction at all. It is unprofessional and rude to chatter away in a foreign language over the heads of the customers when you are clearing the table. It is meant to be done quietly and efficiently.

The only thing that was impressive was the size of the bill.

my family and friends and work mates have been regular patrons since 1985 but since late 2009 the quality of the food has deteriorated my last meal being a take away which was on sat 13th nov the lamb was poor quality that what you would buy in a lesser known supermarket diced and ready to cook the chicken was reconstructed used by cheap take aways i am sorry to inform you of these facts but i am-not the only one to have this opinion this is to let you know of the facts as they are iam sure you will resolve this issue and put the last days of raj at the top of the league where it belongs

yours rob Williams

my family and friends and work mates have been regular patrons since 1985 but since late 2009 the quality of the food has deteriorated my last meal being a take away which was on sat 13th nov the lamb was poor quality that what you would buy in a lesser known supermarket diced and ready to cook the chicken was reconstructed used by cheap take aways i am sorry to inform you of these facts but i am-not the only one to have this opinion this is to let you know of the facts as they are iam sure you will resolve this issue and put the last days of raj at the top of the league where it belongs

yours rob Williams

Forgot to rate it. Ha.

This a excellent restaurant, with top quality food. The service was superb. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone.

Ive been coming to the last days of the Raj for years - both dining and take away. The food is truly outstanding and by far the best Indian cuisine in the region -no wonder ldotr is in the top 30 in the uk. The staff are polite, friendly and always accomodating. If you want truly exceptional indian cuisine, outstanding service and surroundings to match last days of the raj has it all!

The Last Days of the Raj is by far the best Indian restaurant in the area. It is nationally famous and has won numerous awards. To start, the staff are incredible. They are always attentive, smartly dressed and go to great lengths to ensure that your visit to the last days is a memorable one. The food is flawless. I've never tasted nicer Indian food than what is available here. In honesty, that statement may not just apply to Indian food; i would go so far as to say that some of the best food of any kind that i've ever tasted is here. It isn't cheap to eat here but using the place as a rare treat makes it all worth the money. If you visit one restaurant in the Newcastle/Gateshead, visit the Last Days of the Raj!

We visited this restaurant in Nov 09 after hearing good reviews from people (interestingly people who had not been for at least a year).

The place inside is nice in the reception area but in the restaurant itself it seemed slightly tatty with an air of a place that was living on past glories-quite old fashioned and not very warm for a cold November night.

After ordering we waited some time for the food but were prepared to overlook this if it was going to be something special.

Unfortunately it was not , in fact , it is not an overstatement to say the food was terrible!I have been enjoying Indian food for over 30 years and this was the worst food I and the party I was with have had-without a shadow of a doubt.Two very different curries seemed almost identical and all the curries ordered were no better than a cheap microwave or boil in the bag curry.In fact nobody from our party of four enjoyed their meal and after sampling the other dishes I am not surprised.

If this wasn't bad enough-the bill came too £120 and after informing the non plussed waiter that we had ordered the Thursday specials, we final got the bill knocked down to a correct £80.

Add to this absolutely terrible service (apart from one young waiter) and the fact that after we were asked how we enjoyed our meal and we replied we were disappointed we were met with shrugging indifference.

All in all a very poor place both for food and service and if that is typical of the place I imagine the Last Days of the Raj are not that far away!